If I think back to it... I suppose I really never had or harboured any distinction between the two then... and now have come full circle again not giving a damn about black or death metal tags. I like what I like.

Back in 1993 though I would have been 16 or 17. The year prior to graduation and pre-internet time. Basically having only a familarity with bands I could buy from the HMV or recall reading about in Metal Maniacs.
However being located in North America it was bands like Metallica and Megadeth, Iron Maiden... Slayer, Pantera... mostly whatever Road Runner and those type of record labels were releasing was easily familiar, so death metal I suppose.
Wasn't until some compilation from Century Media on their Century Black imprint that I really was introduced to something along the black metal aesthetics. Emperor, Samael, Tiamat, etc etc
Still never really considered anything to be of a different mentality or genre based idealism.
However there was a hunger for darker and more sinister music birthed through that little exposure and thus sparked the beginning I guess to being slightly drawn towards more black metal.
With the help of some friends I slowly aqauinted myself with in the city via finally the birthing of the internet into my cave... I made the large leap into darkness and black metal totally consumed my interest.

Now again... it's everything, the path is no longer so singular. Everything from the goofy Ghost to the merciless brutality of Revenge plays and is enjoyed through my stereo. The only commonality now is violent reality and a penchant for occultish horror and deviltry, if the music lacks that I tend to have not much interest in it as bands with those themes seem to provide the sounds that catch the ear.

93... I was already into the likes of Baphomet, Goatlord and Vital Remains having been through Obituary, Deicide, Death etc and I was pretty pleased with myself for that and thought I was 'cult' and shit, then I read about about Varg etc. I followed with great interest what was occurring over in Norway but the small amount of black metal I heard at the time really did nothing for me. I remember hearing Burzum at a party, forced upon me by a guy who was previously 'exclusively death metal'; I thought it sucked hard. I got the vinyl of 'Blaze... simply because of the magnificent cover art - it took a further two years for me to understand that album and black metal in general.